Sunday, February 21, 2016

Guest Post with Author Sharon Ashwood and Giveaway

Sharon Ashwood is a novelist, desk jockey and enthusiast for the weird and spooky. She has an English literature degree but works as a finance geek. Interests include growing her to-be-read pile and playing with the toy graveyard on her desk. As a vegetarian, she freely admits the whole vampire/werewolf lifestyle would never work out, so she writes her adventures instead.

Sharon is the winner of the RITA® Award for Paranormal Romance. She lives in the Pacific Northwest and is owned by the Demon Lord of Kitty Badness.

Would you really want to experience your romance hero’s home town? What if that “steeped in history” vibe really meant it was a bit, um, primitive?

The first novel of my new paranormal romance series, ENCHANTED WARRIOR has a time travel element. The hero is Sir Gawain from King Arthur’s court and the heroine, Tamsin, is a historian from the present day. The action moves between the present and the medieval world, so Tamsin finds herself in Gawain’s previous home.

So what was life at King Arthur’s court really like? The picture books I read as a kid are full of unicorns and great dresses, but history says it would have been uncomfortable by modern standards. My fictional world falls between the two because it’s a romance and, hey, who wouldn’t have magically improved housekeeping if you could get it?

I had the opportunity to stay in some castles on one of my trips to England. We went in March, which was less expensive but much colder than peak tourist season. Drafts were common, hot water scarce, and I won’t talk about the rain. Nevertheless, there’s no substitute for feeling a thousand years of history hovering in the darkness as you snuggle under the covers at night. The feel of those places came back to me as I was writing this book. They were the real thing—ancient, raw, and undeniably romantic.

Would you stay in a knight’s castle? Or would you prefer a Venetian palace? Or maybe something warm in Greece or Spain? What time and place would you choose for a fantasy getaway?

An ancient evil rises. An ancient warrior awakens.

In an age clouded by legend, Gawain was one of King Arthur’s greatest knights. When he awakens centuries after the fall of Camelot, he faces his most daunting quest yet-the search for his missing companions. His hope is that Tamsin Greene, the alluring historian at Medievaland Theme Park, can help him. Then he senses the magic within her… Gawain will now have to trust a witch-and his own heart-to rouse the knights of the Round Table and save humanity from a faery onslaught.

Huge hands grabbed her from behind, pulling her backward until she collided with a rock-hard chest. Tamsin inhaled, about to scream, but a palm clamped over her mouth. A moment later, the man’s free arm grasped her middle. Tamsin lunged forward, but his grip was an iron bar. Her next move was to kick back, aiming for the man’s knee. She missed, catching only his shin with the soft sole of her boot. He grunted and pulled her against him so tightly she could barely breathe.

“Don’t,” he said, the word clipped and cold.

Tamsin froze, going utterly still. Whoever this was, his psychic shields were so powerful he’d been completely hidden from her scan. After fretting about evil creatures stalking witches, she was too scared to reach for her magic. Every instinct warned her this stranger would not tolerate further defiance. This was a professional. A predator. A true threat. She knew it on a level so primitive it was coded into her DNA.

Her obedience seemed to work, because the hand clamped over her mouth slowly moved away. He tasted of salt, sweat and man. He hadn’t used weapons to overpower her, just brute strength. That show of confidence made him seem all the more deadly.

“You will not cry out.” His words had traces of a brogue—Scottish, perhaps. His deep, masculine voice vibrated through the line where their bodies touched and sank into her bones.

“Please,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper. “What do you want?”

“Turn around.”

The arm locked about her loosened, allowing her to move but not to escape. Tamsin shrank away as far as she could, the heat of his body a sharp contrast to the cool November air.

“Turn,” he repeated. “I want to see your face when I question you.”

Tamsin obeyed, sliding within the circle of his arm. It put their faces barely twelve inches apart, and that was only because he was so tall. Her first instinct was to avoid eye contact, to rebel at least in that small way, but curiosity won. She snatched a glance from under her lashes.

She froze all over again as he nailed her in place with a brilliant blue gaze. He was younger than she’d expected—maybe in his late twenties—and handsome enough that she forgot to breathe. His face had strong bones, the features bold and almost sensual. Heat rose to her cheeks as her insides curled into a protective ball. He was far too magnetic, far too there for comfort.

He studied her face a moment longer, his gaze filled with bold assessment. It finally broke when the corners of his mouth quirked. “You are the historian who is supposed to explain this place to visitors, Tamsin Greene?”

Up For Grabs:

1 Signed copy of Enchanted Warrior

To Enter:

Would you stay in a knight’s castle? Or would you prefer a Venetian palace? Or maybe something warm in Greece or Spain? What time and place would you choose for a fantasy getaway?